Consthxtctiobt of hebuial trusses



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEWIS B. VHITE, OF MOSCOV, NEW YORK.

CONSTRUCTION 0F HERNIAL TRUSSES.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 29,737, dated August 21, 1860.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEWIS B. WHITE, of Moscow, in the county of Livingston and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Trusses Used in Cases of Hernia and as Abdominal Supporters; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings and letters of reference marked thereon, making part of this specification.

A metallic bow marked b, a brass lever marked Z, a pad marked p and a steel spring marked s.

The bow is made to pass partly around the body of the patient-is about of an inch wide, a little the thickest in the middle, with the edges turned, so as to form an arched or corrugated back, for the greater strength of the instrument, the inside of the bow presenting a smooth oval surface. This bow forms a permanent base, or the foundation of the instrument. At the end of the bow, upon its edge, extends a pivot, which passes through the lever, as seen at f, forming a fulcrum for the lever.

The brass lever has two arms, being bent near where the pivot passes through it. The long arm is usually about an inch and a half in length, though it may be varied according to circumstances, and forms with the bow, an angle of about 45 degrees. To this long arm is attached the pad, by means of screws. The short arm of the lever is about half an inch long, forming a right angle with the bow. The end of the short arm is slotted, transversely to the bow and furnished with a pin.

The spring is of steel, about four inches in length, half an inch wide at one end, and a fourth of an inch, at the other. The broad end of the spring is fastened to the bow, by a screw marked ci. The narrow end is turned with a hook, fitted to the slot in the end of the short arm of the lever by means of which the spring is connected, immediately with the lever, at the end opposite to the pad. This gives a rotary motion to the lever, thereby giving an upward as well as an inward pressure to the pad. By this arrangement, the lever is held upon the pivot, or fulcrum, by its connection with the spring, avoiding the necessity of riveting the end of the pivot.

The pad may be made of wood, bone, or any suitable substance, and of any required form or size.

The advantages of this truss, over any other now in use, are conciseness, cheapness and durability-simplicity of construction and action. Y

The spring, by means of its hook, performs the double office of supplying the power to the pad and of holding the lever upon the pivot or fulcrum, thereby avoiding all side friction, which is not the case with any other truss with which I am acquainted. The hook is so constructed, that by a slight pressure of the thumb upon the spring, it

can be detached from the lever at pleasure,`

thus affording every facility for taking the instrument apart for the purpose of cleaning and oiling the joints or for applying pads of different form or size or levers of different lengths or for adjusting the power of the spring by means of the screw d, which can be turned wit-h the point of a pen-knife when the strain occasioned by the connection of the spring with the lever is removed. These are advantages possessed by no other truss now in use.

That I claim as my invention and wish to secure by Letters Patent is- The connection or combination of the spring S, by means of the hook, immediately with the lever of the truss herein described.

Moscow, June 20, 1860.

LEVIS B. WHITE. [n s] Witnesses:

F. G. VICKER,

ALFRED KENDALL. 

